Prediction comes true for local Ravens player

Baltimore's Lardarius Webb (center), a former Nicholls standout, predicted the Ravens would reach the Super Bowl this season.

AP file

Mike DetillierNFL Analyst

Published: Friday, February 1, 2013 at 6:00 p.m.

Last Modified: Friday, February 1, 2013 at 6:25 p.m.

NEW ORLEANS — Pro and college sports can be humbling in so many ways. Sometimes in the best of times you also get thrown the toughest of adversities.

That is the case for former Nicholls State University all-American cornerback Lardarius Webb, now in his fourth season with the Baltimore Ravens.

Webb was considered one of the top young cornerbacks in the NFL heading into the 2012 season. In 2011, he played intercepted five passes in the regular season, 3 in the postseason, defended 20 passes and didn't allow a touchdown reception the entire season.

The Ravens rewarded Webb with a new five-year, $50 million contract with a $10 million signing bonus.

Last summer at the Lardarius Webb Camp at Nicholls, Webb was excited about the challenges for 2012 and was over the heartbreak of losing to the New England Patriots in the AFC championship game.

“Naturally you are down when you lose a game like how we lost to the Patriots. It takes a little time to get over it, but you have to move on,” Webb said at the time. “People are upset that Lee (Evans) had the ball popped away from him by Sterling Moore in the endzone and that our kicker Billy Cundiff missed the 32-yard field goal that could have won it for us, but you learn that you win as a team and you lose as a team. We won't be denied this year. This was a test of our mental toughness to see if we can bounce back from adversity. My dream in 2012 is to end the season right back here in Louisiana and this time we win it all on the turf of the Superdome. I will be back here in early February and we will be playing in the Super Bowl.”

Webb was prophetic in his comments, but on Sunday, he will not be playing.

In an Oct. 14 game against the Dallas Cowboys, Webb was lost for the season with a torn ACL in his left knee and his dream of playing in the Super Bowl was lost, at least for this season.

“I was down for a few days right after it happened,” Webb said at Tuesday's Super Bowl XLVII media day. “Naturally all the thoughts about how hard you had worked all off-season and in training camp flowed through your mind. It was a tough mental challenge to overcome, but I realized quickly I had to be there to help support and encourage the younger guys on this team. Initially you feel as though you let down your teammates, the organization, the owner of the team who had showed his appreciation of my skills by giving me a new contract and the fans of the Ravens. I couldn't do anything about the injury, but I could do everything I can to bounce back from it.

“People say it's a bittersweet moment for me, but it is motivation for me to look around and see the surroundings of the Super Bowl and my dream of playing in this game be lost for the moment and know it is part of me to get back to this game,” he added. “This is a team game and I am a team player. You will never hear bittersweet come from my mouth. That is part of my drive and determination right now and in the future. You won't hear a negative tone from me. That's not part of how I live and right now the best thing I can do is support, encourage, motivate and give some insights to the younger players on this team. I can't be out on the field with them playing, but I am doing everything I can to help them in other areas.”

Webb is not surprised about how the Ravens got to the Super Bowl, winning road games against the Denver Broncos and Patriots.

“As a team, we have been through a lot this season from an injury standpoint and everyone picking every other team other than us to get here,” he said. “No one but the guys on this team and our fans thought we could go to Denver and beat the Broncos and Peyton Manning. No one but our team and our fans thought we could go to New England and beat a really good Patriots team and Tom Brady, but we did. We have a lot of players on this team that won't let obstacles and predictions stand in our path to be Super Bowl champions and we have some of the best leaders in pro football on this team in Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, Joe Flacco, Ray Rice and Coach (Jim) Harbaugh. We don't use the word can't in our vocabulary.”

Webb said he has also been motivated by the support of fans for his return to the game.

“It's really touching, and it brings it back down to earth to know the support I have gotten from the city of Baltimore, Ravens fans all across the country, people on Twitter, the folks that I grew up with and saw me play in Alabama and also at Nicholls State,” Webb said. “I can't thank them enough for their thoughts, their prayers and their encouragement. It means a lot to me and words can't express my gratitude to them. Some people may have thought Lardarius Webb would never make it in the NFL and never get to a Super Bowl because of some my actions, but it is not the falls that matter in life but how you handle picking yourself up from the falls. I got help along the way, and I know what it is to come back from a serious knee injury. It happened to me in December 2009 when I tore the ligaments in my right knee late in the season. To see how all this is happening around me is my motivation to work hard, even today, to get back to the playing field in 2013.”

Webb has seen the steady growth and improvement of the Ravens offense on a team noted for their great defense.

“There is no question that the NFL and the rules at hand favor the offense, and Coach Harbaugh and Coach Jim Caldwell, who calls the offensive plays, have done a great job putting the offense in a position to score,” Webb said. “We are not one dimensional. Ray Rice is one of the best backs in the NFL, and our offensive line has done a great job running the ball and throw in now Bernard Pierce and we are a very phsycial running team. No one talks about Joe Flacco and what he has done. He outplayed Peyton Manning and Tom Brady to get us here. Joe has done a superb job for us and on the road to win games for this team. Our receiving unit is also outstanding with Anquan Boldin, Torrey Smith-who is a Pro Bowl caliber receiver, Jacoby Jones and our tight end Dennis Pitta. They don't get the publicity some of the other units get because we are labeled a run-oriented team and people talk about our defense, but we got here on their backs too. I can't say enough about how well Joe (Flacco) has played and this is his moment.”

For Webb, the motivation for him to return to the game is right in front of him, but for his teammates, it's a chance to win a world championship is ever so close and it also means sending Lewis out with another Super Bowl title.

“We talk as a team about doing everything we can to win this game,” Webb said. “As a group, we are physically and mentally tough, but so are the 49ers. It takes a lot to get here, but once you are here, it is all about winning it. People forget about who loses this game, but they will always remember the winning team and who knows if you will ever get back to the Super Bowl. Being a part of a world championship team is something no one can take away from you. You will spend your money, your fame will fade away and there will be other challenges in life, but no one can take away that you are part of being better than anyone was in that one season.

“And we as a team want to win this for Baltimore, our organization, our fans, us as a group, but we also want to see Uncle Ray go out a champion. I call him Uncle Ray because he is like a family member to us. Ray Lewis teaches us all about life issues, not just about football and while we can't do anything about what happens in the future without him, we can do everything we can to have him go out as a champion like it should be. He has been a great football player, but even more he is a better person, friend and teammate to all of us. His ability to communicate and motivate us inspires me to try and be that type of person now and in the future for the Ravens.”

<p>NEW ORLEANS — Pro and college sports can be humbling in so many ways. Sometimes in the best of times you also get thrown the toughest of adversities.</p><p>That is the case for former Nicholls State University all-American cornerback Lardarius Webb, now in his fourth season with the Baltimore Ravens.</p><p>Webb was considered one of the top young cornerbacks in the NFL heading into the 2012 season. In 2011, he played intercepted five passes in the regular season, 3 in the postseason, defended 20 passes and didn't allow a touchdown reception the entire season. </p><p>The Ravens rewarded Webb with a new five-year, $50 million contract with a $10 million signing bonus.</p><p>Last summer at the Lardarius Webb Camp at Nicholls, Webb was excited about the challenges for 2012 and was over the heartbreak of losing to the New England Patriots in the AFC championship game.</p><p>“Naturally you are down when you lose a game like how we lost to the Patriots. It takes a little time to get over it, but you have to move on,” Webb said at the time. “People are upset that Lee (Evans) had the ball popped away from him by Sterling Moore in the endzone and that our kicker Billy Cundiff missed the 32-yard field goal that could have won it for us, but you learn that you win as a team and you lose as a team. We won't be denied this year. This was a test of our mental toughness to see if we can bounce back from adversity. My dream in 2012 is to end the season right back here in Louisiana and this time we win it all on the turf of the Superdome. I will be back here in early February and we will be playing in the Super Bowl.”</p><p>Webb was prophetic in his comments, but on Sunday, he will not be playing.</p><p>In an Oct. 14 game against the Dallas Cowboys, Webb was lost for the season with a torn ACL in his left knee and his dream of playing in the Super Bowl was lost, at least for this season.</p><p>“I was down for a few days right after it happened,” Webb said at Tuesday's Super Bowl XLVII media day. “Naturally all the thoughts about how hard you had worked all off-season and in training camp flowed through your mind. It was a tough mental challenge to overcome, but I realized quickly I had to be there to help support and encourage the younger guys on this team. Initially you feel as though you let down your teammates, the organization, the owner of the team who had showed his appreciation of my skills by giving me a new contract and the fans of the Ravens. I couldn't do anything about the injury, but I could do everything I can to bounce back from it. </p><p>“People say it's a bittersweet moment for me, but it is motivation for me to look around and see the surroundings of the Super Bowl and my dream of playing in this game be lost for the moment and know it is part of me to get back to this game,” he added. “This is a team game and I am a team player. You will never hear bittersweet come from my mouth. That is part of my drive and determination right now and in the future. You won't hear a negative tone from me. That's not part of how I live and right now the best thing I can do is support, encourage, motivate and give some insights to the younger players on this team. I can't be out on the field with them playing, but I am doing everything I can to help them in other areas.”</p><p>Webb is not surprised about how the Ravens got to the Super Bowl, winning road games against the Denver Broncos and Patriots.</p><p>“As a team, we have been through a lot this season from an injury standpoint and everyone picking every other team other than us to get here,” he said. “No one but the guys on this team and our fans thought we could go to Denver and beat the Broncos and Peyton Manning. No one but our team and our fans thought we could go to New England and beat a really good Patriots team and Tom Brady, but we did. We have a lot of players on this team that won't let obstacles and predictions stand in our path to be Super Bowl champions and we have some of the best leaders in pro football on this team in Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, Joe Flacco, Ray Rice and Coach (Jim) Harbaugh. We don't use the word can't in our vocabulary.”</p><p>Webb said he has also been motivated by the support of fans for his return to the game.</p><p>“It's really touching, and it brings it back down to earth to know the support I have gotten from the city of Baltimore, Ravens fans all across the country, people on Twitter, the folks that I grew up with and saw me play in Alabama and also at Nicholls State,” Webb said. “I can't thank them enough for their thoughts, their prayers and their encouragement. It means a lot to me and words can't express my gratitude to them. Some people may have thought Lardarius Webb would never make it in the NFL and never get to a Super Bowl because of some my actions, but it is not the falls that matter in life but how you handle picking yourself up from the falls. I got help along the way, and I know what it is to come back from a serious knee injury. It happened to me in December 2009 when I tore the ligaments in my right knee late in the season. To see how all this is happening around me is my motivation to work hard, even today, to get back to the playing field in 2013.”</p><p>Webb has seen the steady growth and improvement of the Ravens offense on a team noted for their great defense.</p><p>“There is no question that the NFL and the rules at hand favor the offense, and Coach Harbaugh and Coach Jim Caldwell, who calls the offensive plays, have done a great job putting the offense in a position to score,” Webb said. “We are not one dimensional. Ray Rice is one of the best backs in the NFL, and our offensive line has done a great job running the ball and throw in now Bernard Pierce and we are a very phsycial running team. No one talks about Joe Flacco and what he has done. He outplayed Peyton Manning and Tom Brady to get us here. Joe has done a superb job for us and on the road to win games for this team. Our receiving unit is also outstanding with Anquan Boldin, Torrey Smith-who is a Pro Bowl caliber receiver, Jacoby Jones and our tight end Dennis Pitta. They don't get the publicity some of the other units get because we are labeled a run-oriented team and people talk about our defense, but we got here on their backs too. I can't say enough about how well Joe (Flacco) has played and this is his moment.” </p><p>For Webb, the motivation for him to return to the game is right in front of him, but for his teammates, it's a chance to win a world championship is ever so close and it also means sending Lewis out with another Super Bowl title.</p><p>“We talk as a team about doing everything we can to win this game,” Webb said. “As a group, we are physically and mentally tough, but so are the 49ers. It takes a lot to get here, but once you are here, it is all about winning it. People forget about who loses this game, but they will always remember the winning team and who knows if you will ever get back to the Super Bowl. Being a part of a world championship team is something no one can take away from you. You will spend your money, your fame will fade away and there will be other challenges in life, but no one can take away that you are part of being better than anyone was in that one season.</p><p>“And we as a team want to win this for Baltimore, our organization, our fans, us as a group, but we also want to see Uncle Ray go out a champion. I call him Uncle Ray because he is like a family member to us. Ray Lewis teaches us all about life issues, not just about football and while we can't do anything about what happens in the future without him, we can do everything we can to have him go out as a champion like it should be. He has been a great football player, but even more he is a better person, friend and teammate to all of us. His ability to communicate and motivate us inspires me to try and be that type of person now and in the future for the Ravens.”</p>